Maxwell Fire: Firefighters battle 75-acre Lefthand Canyon blaze

Firefighters are battling a fast moving wildfire in Lefthand Canyon in the foothills north of Boulder.

The Maxwell Fire is estimated at 75 acres, according to fire officials. The wildland fire is in the 4,000 block of Lefthand Canyon Drive, near the 3.7 mile marker, on U.S.

A slurry bomber makes a pass over the Maxwell in Left Hand Canyon in Boulder. (Mark Leffingwell)

Forest Service Land on the north side of the canyon.

The fire started at about 5 p.m. Sunday. Smoke initially was reported by passerby, according to fire service officials. Smoke was visible from much of Boulder County throughout the evening.

A mandatory evacuation was in place for about 340 homes, for residents within a 1.5-mile radius of the 3.7 mile marker, earlier today. Now, residents have been warned to be ready to evacuate if the fire changes direction or grows significantly, said Boulder County sheriff's Cmdr. Rick Brough.

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Brough said 50 firefighters fought the fire, working to create a fuel break between the fire and Boulder Heights, while two heavy air tankers and two single-engine air tankers also dropped multiple loads of retardant on the fire.

The fire is headed toward the same area in Lefthand Canyon burned by a wildfire in March. The hope, Brough said, is it will burn itself out there for lack of fuel.

Brough said the fire started about a fourth of a mile west of the popular Lefthand Canyon Off-Highway Vehicle Area/Shooting Area.

Weather conditions, with humidity of less than 10 percent, high temperatures and wind, helped spread the fire quickly, officials said. The fire also is an area with steep slopes and fuel from timber.

“It is actively growing and we're doing everything we can to stop it,” Maribeth Pecotte, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service Boulder Ranger District, said shortly after the fire started.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The Maxwell Fire is the third blaze this year that started near the off-highway area.

The fire in March burned between 200 and 300 acres in Lefthand Canyon and was declared human caused because it started in the Off-Highway Vehicle Area. A small grass fire also burned 1.5 acres in June in the 3700 block of Lefthand Canyon Drive near the same area.

Road closures are Left Hand Canyon at North Foothills Highway, with local traffic allowed with identification to Old Stage Road, James Canyon at Lefthand Canyon to Old Stage Road and Old Stage at Lefthand Canyon to James Canyon.

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